A Day in the Village: Solemnity, Laughter & Cultural Observations

Today I spent out in the village - attending a baby-naming ceremony. The solemnity of the occasion being that the baby born is that of my friend Moussa who died in a vehicle accident earlier this month. It was a very different ceremony than I am used to attending, understandably, for the pall of grief overshadowed the day. I brought with me a bag of rice knowing that the feeding of all those who come for the day will be a difficult (if not an impossible) task for the widow to finance.

The room with the newborn and the mother was eerily silent - there was no chatting and the women sat for the most part averting their eyes to the ground. Sitting with the mother to lend the support in her grief to what is likely a day of rememberance to her late husband. The only sound is the occasional fussing of another young child. I am handed the baby to hold and I sit there trying not to cry - praying that the God of comfort will show His comfort to this family.

As I sit there I hear the small murmurings of a few women that the baby boy has not yet had his head shaven - a custom in the Fulani culture, whether the baby is a boy or a girl. It is a practice I shudder to watch - once I was asked to hold the baby during the procedure. As I am currently holding this baby, I hope that I will not be asked to perform the task! . . . I cut myself whilst shaving my legs with a razor safely ensconced in a razor head. There is no way that I will take a straight edge razor blade to the head of a newborn - or any child for that matter! I do not trust my 'skill'. Before the razor arrives, one of my 'hostesses' for the day calls me and I gladly follow her out of the room. As I hand the baby back the mother gives me a sad wave good-bye. Other than handing me her child, it is the only reaction to her surroundings I have seen.

On walking through the courtyard, I notice that the men's group sitting on the mats is much more subdued and quiet than usual as well. I enter another hut on the corner of the yard. The women greet me and I settle in on the corner of the bed which they have staked out for me as my real estate for the day. The greetings in Fulfulde fly around for a few minutes as each of the 8-10 women in the hut greet me and I them in return - our words flowing like a river around the hut in an continuous current of noise.

Soon the mid-morning snack is brought out - lecciri (lay-chee-ri). It is one of my favourite foods and is often served at ceremonies. Today's traditional mix (of steamed starch grains, onions, spices and tree leaves) has an extra addition. I am not sure which plant has been added, but it tastes somewhat like pickled celery with a slightly bitter edge. My fingers slyly work their way around this item in the mix as I make little lecciri balls in my hand to eat. While we are eating this snack, the lady next to me passes off some money and a bowl to a child and sends her running to purchase another snack from somewhere down the road. The child returns to the hut and the bowl and change is handed over to my neighbour. And here the laughter of the day begins, as we seem to be far enough away from the solemnity for the ladies to still tease each other.

The bowl is filled with what appears to be steamed cabbage and more tree leaves. It is covered in a multihued blanket of powder: spicy powder, maggi cube powder (oxo packet) and salt. There is talk of peanut butter, but nothing I see in the mix resembles this. My neighbour licks her finger and tentatively tastes each of the spice blends - finds one she does not like and proceeds to pick it out - the powder floating out of her fingers and blending in with the sand at her feet. I am then offered the first taste, which I decline while declaring the just finished snack of lecciri sufficient. It is quickly apparent that I am the only one not eager to eat this new snack, for the other ladies quickly protest when they are not offered a taste. Hands start snaking around and past me, and small morsels of food fly through the air, as all the ladies try to sneak a handful of food without my neighbour noticing!

She finally gives up and shares her bowl around the circle, without relinquising her tight hold on the bowl, saying over and over: "small small . . . small small". One of the older women in the group guilefully scrapes about 80% of the snack into a large ball in her hand - all the while regarding my neighbour with a twinkle in her eye - daring her to protest, knowing that my neighbour cannot do so without breaking her respect for 'her elder'. The 'thief' pulls her hand overflowing with the snack in to her chest and is quietly chuckling for she knows she has outdone my neighbour! However, as the bowl passes in front of her again, she returns the food to the bowl and takes a smaller and more appropriate portion.

After the snacking is finished, some of the women leave and the others get down to the business at hand - the shaving of the infant's head. At previous baby-naming ceremonies, I have noticed a stainless steel platter in the room - filled with some millet seed and some money.

I've never figured out what the meaning of this platter was and my tutor - a male - cannot venture a guess, having never sat in the women's area of a ceremony before. Today, as the group of women was quite small, there are now only 6 of us in the hut, I can easily follow the discussion. Today, there is also no millet, so I can see what is normally hidden. The women are collecting money with which to purchase the new razor blade and a new block of soap. Once the money is collected, a child is sent off to purchase the supplies and then a few of the older ladies leave to go shave the little guy's head.

While waiting for the lunch meal to descend, I chat with the few remaining ladies in the hut - it is much easier for me to engage 2-3 in a conversation versus a group . . . the larger the group, the more likely I am to just listen to their fast words like I am watching a tennis ball match. We talk about my family and I made a observation about cultural assumptions:

1. When I speak of my parents - I know and assume that I am speaking of my father and his one wife (my mother).

2. When they hear me speak of my parents - they assume that I am speaking of my father and the one wife of multiple wives who gave birth to me.

For when I mentioned that I was the youngest child - one of the women said, "Oh, the youngest of your mother and of your father with that wife?"

"Well, no", I responded, "The youngest of my father as well, he has one wife".

It is often the little things on which we make assumptions, forgetting that another culture has a different coloured lens through which they view the world. It is quite a paradigm shift for me to think of how I tell 'my story' in light of how their culture perceives my words - down to something as simple as how I speak of my parents!

The women enjoyed hearing that my nieces Madelynn and Michella love languages and ask me to teach them Fulfulde. It was interesting to see how the one lady proudly retold the story to a Djarma lady - relaying to her that not only does "she speak Fulfulde, but her nieces who live in another country can also speak the words: giraffe, hippo and elephant!"

Maddie and Michella - the village ladies love you!

Throughout the afternoon, different ladies drift in and out of the hut to lay down for a siesta - it is a hot afternoon, reaching +38 today. At one point, a street vendor wanders through the compound. I recognize him by his accent even before I see him carrying his silver tray of goodies on his head. I noticed that the majority of street vendors have the same accent - a rather low gravely timbre and slightly nasal. I am always surprised to see a young man as the sound of the voice equates more so to an older man in my mind. I keep meaning to ask someone if those who have this accent are of a particular ethnic group, or if the accent is a learned and practiced voice with which to instantly distinguish them in a crowd of people as someone who has merchandise to sell. It is now about five hours since my breakfast, so I ask if he has peanuts for sale. He does not, but passes over a little baggie of something he thinks is a good equivalent ("same same, but different" - reminds of what I have heard of Cambodia)! I have no idea what the food is, but decide to give it a try. It turned out to be more similar to popcorn, in cooking style at least; for my snack was "popped beans" - still warm, either from the fire or the sun!

Eventually, around 3pm, lunch is served! Around twenty to thirty ladies squeezed into the hut and the already high temperature rises accordingly! I am given my own bowl of food - a portion which I could never eat alone! But, the blessing of my own individual dish is that I can dig a hole while pushing rice around, appearing to have eaten more than I have, rather surreptiously and without being noticed by someone sharing my pot. The average Fulani individual can eat about five times amount the food I can - so really, no matter how much I eat, I will be told to keep eating! But, I figure if it looks like I've eaten a fair amount, can't hurt. (I've also learned to stop just slightly this side of full, knowing that at least on the first insistence that I keep eating, I need to cram in a few more handfuls.)

The ladies start looking for a spoon, but I convince them I know how to eat with my hand. I am tempted to skim the rice all around the top portion of the bowl - mostly because that portion comprises the yummy sauce, but also because the rice packed into the bottom of the bowl is the hottest and likely to burn my fingers. (I probably should take the offered spoon, but having just wiped my hand with an anti-bacterial towlette, I know that my hand is cleaner than any spoon they can find!) I also figure that whoever gets the leavings of my bowl to finish, when I finally convince them that I am done eating and full, will appreciate having sauce and not just a bowl of plain rice.

Mid-way through the meal, a huge storm whips through - blasting the sand through the holes in the hut. As the sand swirls around the air, I am the only one who scrambles to cover my food with my veil - or at all - the ladies around me keep eating! They are obviously more used to crunching through sand and grit in their sauce.

I am also tempted to not eat the meat. The Fulani rarely eat meat and only during ceremonies of weddings and baby-namings, so I know that they need the meat more than I. Yet, as the meat is so rare, to not eat this would be a huge insult. In the end, I eat half the meat and once my bowl is passed off to another circle, three ladies eagerly (and quite fast) grab at the meat I have left in an effort to be the first hand to grab the chunk. One lady gains the portion but the others do manage to tear off a morsel for themselves.

Following the meal, my friend is ready to go home and we head back to Niamey. It was a long day in the village, but an important day both for my language study and my relationship building!

Would you Like: Paper or Plastic?

When I thought of a bag - or sack - back home . . . the above question is what most quickly came to mind. The choice of sack.

However, recently I've come to learn that here I have a choice of sacks as well. A friend of mine was told by a mutual Fulani friend that there are language sacks:

Some people have separate sacks for every language in their head. So as they are speaking in either French, English, Fulfulde, Djarma - they pull words from that language sack. Other people just have one language sack in which everything is one big mix.

I think I try to keep my language sacks separate, but every so often - one spills into another, mid-conversation as it were. Those who knew me and spoke with me during my Québec sudies - and even now - know that my French sack spills often in my English conversations. And vice versa. Sometimes the spillage consists of French-ified english words or Anglicized french words (see - just did it!). We call this Franglais or Frenglish . . . Franglais actually popped up on Facebook as a language choice!! Phew, so I must not be the only one!

Other times, the spill of one sack into another consists of entire sentences in one language with an occasional word in the other.

I remember during my first year here - I went out to do some village surveys. One day I was teamed up with a local Fulani villager (who speaks Fulfulde and French) and we tag-teamed the surveys. At one point, I turned to him and spoke a couple of sentences. Apparently, I spoke one complete sentence in english and one complete sentence in French. He kindly asked me to repeat myself. As the last words my brain heard were French - I didn't notice the English. And oddly enough, I repeated myself in exactly the same manner: one sentence in English and one sentence in French. He looked at me again and then told me in Fulfulde (for the benefit of everyone else sitting there): "Hadija - you are speaking to me in English!"

Occasionaly, my national languages get mixed up - I can start greeting someone in Djarma or Tamasheq and respond in the other or Fulfulde! In language class, I will occasionally - and purposefully - throw in the odd English or French word into a sentence which I have not yet learned in Fulfulde; knowing that my tutor will then teach me the word necessary. At times I re-read a sentence I have written in English and notice that it is a Fulfulde grammatical structure. (sigh) Yet for the most part (I think) my Fulfulde has it's own separate sack.

Today, however, as I was speaking to a Fulani friend on the phone, my brain processed something new. I've typed my sentence below - and I know what you are thinking: "Kristi, I don't speak Fulfulde!" But I promise you - if you perservere, even you will find the error!!

To my Fulani friend I said:

Janngo subaka, miɗo woodi hawrinde; amma, mi noddete after hawrinde nde.

Find it?

My friend hesitated and asked me to repeat myself. And thankfully, this time, because my brain had somehow caught itself, I was able to repeat my sentence correctly.

Abdoulaye is way too kind!

What I've Gained . . .

. . . by living here!

As promised, to follow my list of things I miss . . . here is my list of things I've gained by living in Niger:

1. friends

Through my three years here in Niger, I've made many new friends - some friends who were here for a time and others who are here long-term. They have become an integral part of my life here. These new friends walk with my as I do life over here and my life is blessed for them having been a part. They challenge and encourage me as we learn together how to live and work in a new culture.

2. culture

My life and worldview is richer for living among people of a different culture. At times, blips of culture shock take over as life here frustrates me. But even those moments teach me about life and myself.

Jokingly, over here, we often call the moments of 'culture shock blips': WAWA (West Africa Wins Again) - these moments in life are often times when we look at our situation and feel like our choice is to laugh or cry - and decide to laugh. The term is code among ourselves to drop an acronym and everyone knows we have had a frustrating day without having to relive it in detail.

Learning how to live in a new culture can be frustrating and fascinating as I learn to interpret different cutural cues and understand what is hidden behind words not said.

3. language

I love to talk . . . this is no secret to those who know me well! And just as much, I love languages - always have, growing up I studied two other languages in school - German and French. In Bible College, I had friends from around the world and I sought to learn some of their languages - I still remember a few words I learned in Manadarin and Swahili! Following Bible College I enrolled in American Sign Language courses - had I stayed at home, I would have loved to continue down this road for a ministry option.

Now, there are so many languages surrounding me! I have studied French again and have been learning Fulfulde (the language of the Fulani) for the last 2+ years! Aside from this, there are many national languages that I hear everyday - and I am making the effort to learn a few greetings in each so that I can greet workers, neighbours and people in the market place in their mother tongue. So far, I can do basic greetings and 'market language' for shopping in Djarma - a national language of Niger following French. I can also do a few basic greetings in Hausa and Tamasheq!

4. variety of food

As you can tell from my previous blog post - I miss a lot of food from back home! But, living in Niger has introduced me to new foods and there are some that I really enjoy:

a. shwarma

This is essentially a meat wrap with sauce, found in Lebanese restaurants. When I am on home assignment, I will need to find a Lebanese restaurant for a shwarma fix every so often!

b. fari-masa

This is a breakfast item sold on the street here - basically, deep fried dough sprinkled in sugar. I treat myself occasionally to this, and there is a lady around the corner from my house who I know cooks 'clean' and it is safe to eat her food.

c. brochettes

This is basically a shish-kebab and many outdoors restaurants will serve brochettes and fries. It is also a good street food to buy! Every restaurant has a different sauce in which they marinate the meat.

d. nems

These are bought at Chinese food restaurants - it is an African version of spring rolls found in Chinese restaurants back home. They are eaten wrapped in lettuce and dipped in either a savoury or spicy/hot sauce.

e. mango

On my last post, you will note that I miss summer fruit - a fruit in abundance here is the mango. Yes, we have these at home - but it is so much more amazing here!

f. rice and beans

One of my favourite village foods is rice and beans, though, it is usually reserved for visiting guests. I especially love it when fried onions are added on top!

g. lecciri

This is another favourite village food, but a rare treat - usually reserved for special events (wedding or baby-naming ceremony) or visiting guests. The main ingredient is a starch (ground corn, ground millet, ground rice) of cous-cous consistency steam cooked. Then cooked tree leaves and sometimes fried onions are mixed in.

h. kwa-kwa-met

Another great street food - a sweet coconut ball. Basically, shaved coconut cooked with sugar and some lemon juice and then rolled into a ball. I have asked my friend Aissa to show me how to cook these!

5. ministry options

a. literacy

I am not sure where I will end up with this; but during language study, I have had the privilege to partner with some Fulani worker colleagues to help write and produce literacy books in Fulfulde. Literacy work was a dream I've had since helping children learn to read in my younger years, but a dream I thought I would have to put off until retirement when I could volunteer in a school. My small involvement this past year in this ministry has shown me a glimpse of how I can follow God down His path and still loves to meet us in our giftings and desires as well!

b. talking about the things of God

I am so thankful for the youth leaders in my life - in my junior high, high school and post-college years - who encouraged and mentored me in my desire to share with others the Word of God. Back when I was 14 years old, when I started writing and leading Bible studies, I never dreamed I would have the privilege of doing this in Africa and in not only my second - yet third language (respectivly, French and Fulfulde)! I've been able to write a study in Fulfulde and I've just taken a course on story-telling. It is such a joy to just sit with people and discuss the things of God!

c. development aid

Also since my youth, another of my passions has been to help those who are downtrodden in life or those fighting poverty. And now I live in a country where I am able to actually help people - living out my God-given passion!

6. The Fulani

Were I to leave Niger, there would be a void in my life and my heart would be saddened and yearn for those that I have come to love. I love sitting around and chatting with my friends, helping them with their work, and the odd moments to play one of their games. I love listening to their stories, sitting with them in their pain and seeing their joy in life! I am blessed by their presence in my life!!

7. 'tourism'

It seems almost surreal sometimes to be living and seeing what I do. In my 'backyard', I play on sand dunes and I can go out and see: giraffes, hippos, elephants, monkeys and lions. (Though one day I hope to travel somewhere where I can also see a zebra!)

8. simplicity of life

I need to learn a lot more of this, I think; but I would summarize this point by saying that there is no 'rushed hurriedness' feeling in the air . . . I noticed this even moving from Calgary to Québec City for language study. It is more so here.

9. purpose and calling

I suppose the biggest thing I've 'gained' in moving here, is that I am living my 'dream'. I am doing not only what I feel I was made for . . . but I am following God's calling on my life. Through all the ups and downs of living here - this is what I hold on to!

What I Miss . . .

. . . the most over here:

One of my uncles recently asked my mom to ask me this question . . . as I approach my 3rd year anniversary and the start of my 4th in Africa, I thought this was a timely question and a fun blog post!

My answer to this question might vary from time to time based on the season or happenings in my life, but I will try to cover my "Top 10" (though, given my long-windedness - yes Uncle Ken, I still love to talk! - my list may be longer than 10! In an effort to keep the list manageable - certain grouping of items (with clarification) will be done as well. So, here goes:

1. It goes without saying that the top of my list is family and friends!!

Well, it apparently needed saying, because my immediate family has "threated" me on facebook that they had better top my list!! But, all jokes aside, it is indeed family and friends who top my list of what I miss!

Sub-categories:

Playing with my nieces: Madelynn and Michella!

Going to the farm in Saskatchewan

Going to the cabin in BC with my parents, brother & his family

2. Pepsi . . . this item may have been forgotten from the list were it not for the reminder of my sister-in-law! However, since about my second year, Pepsi is on occasion imported into the country - so I do get my Pepsi fix in from time to time!

3. Summer Fruits - I've never been a huge fan of apples and bananas, even back home I lived for summer fruits: strawberries, raspberries, peaches, nanking cherries, crab apples.

4. Rhubarb - though a summer fruit, rhubarb demands a category all of it's own - because with rhubarb comes: rhubarb pie, rhubarb juice, rhubarb jelly and the joy of a fresh and wonderfully sour stalk of rhubarb pulled straight out of the ground!

5. Ease of:

a. cooking - cooking out here just seems to take so much more time than at home.

b. shopping - getting to any of the grocery stores and vegetable stands is out of my way . . . no more stopping at Safeway on the way home from work! The other day, I spent 1.5 hours on grocery shopping - driving to three stores and two vegetable stands to get everything on my list!

c. hospitality - this is tied to ease of cooking and ease of shopping. It takes a lot more prep work to host a group of people at my house for the day. To those on facebook, over the holidays - you saw my list: I miss M&M meatballs, tart shells, pre-packaged snacks (like nuts & bolts).

(Though, admittedly, I do remember taking a half-day off work back home to prepare an Indian supper (all from scratch) for 12 at my apartment once. So, I suppose that maybe I just need to learn to be more efficient in my pre-party prep work!)

6. Not needing to prep my food between purchase and cooking . . . I miss:

a. not having to bleach vegetables

b. not having to wash eggs

c. not having to freeze and sift flour before use

7. Fast Food or Drive-Thru:

Yes, I admit, I miss this!

I miss a good old Tim Horton's XL double-double the most! But, I also miss my once or twice a year McDonald's Big Mac. I miss A&W onion rings and bacon 'n eggers. I miss Papa John's pizza. I miss food courts in malls - ginger beef, sushi, japenese stir fries. I miss the turtle blizzard at Dairy Queen . . . this list could go on and on.

Aside from the Tim Horton's XL double double, which I am addicted to - I suppose the biggest reason why I miss fast food (for fast food was not by any means a habit) is for the simplicity or option of finding ready-made food on the days I was too tired to cook!

And lest you think it is all about food - though, we often sit around and talk about the food we miss . . . it does seem to be a prevailing theme out here!! . . . A little variety to my list:

8. Variety of:

a. restaurant choice - here, it is only lebanese cuisine, chinese food (not the same as back home), or a few plate options of French cuisine.

The biggies I miss?? : Ginger Beef, BPs perogy pizza and my favourite salad, Swiss Chalet rotiserie chicken, Tony Roma's BBQ ribs.

Ok - well that one still had to do with food . . . but bear with me - "variety" has a few sub-categories!

b.entertainment options

c. exercise options

d. chocolate - though, I do have a fairly decent European chocolate selection here . . . I miss the variety of Canadian chocolate bars!

OOPS - and the food again!

e. tv shows - yes, I admit to missing tv. Though, on the other side - I have to also admit that missing this is probably a good thing in my life!

9. "New" - this is also somewhat tied to the "ease of" category:

I miss the ease of purchasing new books, music, dvds, etc... Of hearing of a new novel and being able to go out and buy it. Of wanting a new Bible study to do and needing to wait months (ok - at least this time around, I am waiting 2 days, but that is rare!) until someone can bring it out.

Reading has always been a huge part of my life . . . I miss the books that I left in boxes back home. I miss having new books by my favourite authors and books to experiment with in searching for new authors.

Music also tops the list - I love music . . . I love new music. I have been listening to the same 50 odd CDs that I brought along (and appreciate the gifts of CDs that have been sent). I especially miss all the new worship songs that I know are being written and I have not yet heard!

I know . . . I know - there is itunes, but I am not really technically savy and I haven't figured that whole thing out yet. So, I am still fairly old school in my music enjoyment.

10. I miss the fellowship and teaching of my home church. I miss all my friends that I caught up with over coffee before and after the service. I miss planning and helping out with the conferences highlight international work . . . heheh, now I'm just living it!

Well, I guess I did manage to 'keep' the list somewhat to a Top 10!! . . . Though, there are a few stragglers that did not seem to fit a category:

Eggnog - mmm, mmm good stuff. Yes, I miss eggnog. I miss mixing fun stuff in my eggnog with my eggnog friends. And I miss eggnog lattes at Starbucks!

KFC nights - I miss playing ROOK for hours and hours (days . . ) on end with my KFC friends!

Nacho Cheese sauce

Watching: Amazing Race and Gaither Videos with my parents

Scrapbooking - scrapbooking weekends and shopping for scrapbooking supplies

Certain meat options - or at least 'guilt free' meat options - though available here to a certain degree, I miss: pork roast, ham roast, ribs and bacon (particularly pre-cooked and crumbled bacon in a package!)

Hot Springs - Banff hot springs, Radium hot springs . . . really hot tubs in general. I just have a new kind of hot here with hot season!

SNOW . . . Now, before everyone back home tries to throw a snowball over the ocean (yes, I am following the news of the huge snow fall records!). I will clarify this 'miss' with a few points:

a. I don't miss the -30 or -40 that comes with the snow . . .

b. I really just miss the beauty of looking at the snow from inside.

c. Though, I do miss the soft feel of a nice fluffy lazy snowfall.

d. And I also miss the beauty of hoar frost (though not the task to scraping it off my car!)

. . . . AND please feel free to mock me and remind me of these words in 2 years when I am home and bitterly complaining of how cold I am!!

I suppose that I could probably keep adding, but I will cut my list off here for now.

And, stay tuned for the next installment in honour of my anniversary: What I've Gained in Living Here!